The holidays are fast approaching, which means more parties -- and more clothes so that (heaven forbid) no one sees you in the same outfit twice.

But instead of running to the mall every five minutes, you may want to find Graciela Carrillo, who specializes in designing what she calls "casually elegant" accessories that can jazz-up last year's party clothes.

Carrillo is the owner of Graciela at the Yard clothing store, located in the The Yard shopping center at 5323 McCullough Ave. Carrillo's business is creating specialty attire for diverse events.

"San Antonio is a neat city culturally, politically and socially," she says. "Almost every weekend there is a need for something special."

Seasonal events like the lighting of the River Walk, the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo and Fiesta make for a steady business for Carrillo.

Having a talent that has been perfected over the last 30 years does not hurt either when you are looking to market your services. Carrillo opened her business in 1988 out of her home, but she has been in training since she was a pre-teen girl trying desperately to fit in and to avoid a personally painful situation.

"I have been fashion conscious since I was young. I was very heavy -- a butterball -- and it was humiliating to go to chubby departments," she says. "That is why I started making my own outfits when I was 12 years old; I wanted to make a good impression."

With those days behind her, the petite entrepreneur seems to have accomplished what she set out to do. Even before opening her business, the self-proclaimed "walking advertisement" already had an eager customer base.

"At the beginning, when I announced plans (to open my business), a lot of my friends jumped at the idea," she says.

They especially jumped at the opportunity to tap her talent for fashion shows that served as fundraisers. The first such event that Carrillo participated in was the Sembradores de Amistad in 1988, which raises funds for scholarships to universities in the city.

"My friend was in charge of the fund raiser and she approached me to do the fashion show," she says. "I thought she had a lot of nerve (using me), not knowing what I would produce. But she always saw the way I dressed."

This first fashion show led to many more, especially shows that have become signature events for the city -- including the Fiesta Fashion Show held at Our Lady of the Lake University to raise scholarship funds, and the Fiesta Flambeau.

"April is my busiest month," Carrillo says.

Moving up

Success has brought changes, including a new address for Carrillo's business.

In March of last year, Carrillo moved her company from her home to its current location. The store gives Carrillo enough room for a production area, a small kitchen, a retail area and something else that she never had before.

"Now, I have walk-in clients," she says. "I have a new market of people in this area that are active socially and within the community."

Just as Carrillo dubs herself a "walking advertisement" for her business, she also has a name for her clients: "walking billboards."

"She has made numerous clothes for me," says Dora Salinas, director of the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo and chairwoman of the Go Rodeo Committee.

And while Carrillo takes care of the clothes and the women who wear them, her husband, Rosario, makes sure that the other aspects of the business run smoothly. Besides being the one who convinced her to get her own retail space and hire two additional seamstresses, Rosario also reminds his wife that accolades cannot pay the bills.

"He always says, `Ooh's and aah's are wonderful, but are you making any money?'" Carrillo says.

"Every year it is getting better," she adds.

And every year Carrillo's fashions seem to gain in popularity, reaching beyond the geographical limits of this city -- and into places like Washington, D.C.

A picture on the wall of Carrillo's office shows Olga Madrid, the former national secretary of the YWCA and a personal friend of Carrillo's, giving a dress to Marilyn Quayle back when her husband was vice president of the United States.

Carrillo says that Madrid attended a meeting in Washington, D.C., that Quayle and his wife were hosting. She wanted to give something unique to the vice president's wife, and she decided it should be one of Carrillo's outfits.

Carrillo later received a personal note from Marilyn Quayle, thanking her for the outfit. Now Carrillo is looking forward to maybe someday adding a new picture to her wall.

"I am anxious to see one of my outfits worn to a White House event," she says.

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